Amaya was 12 years old when she first heard the word “crusade”. She had no idea what it meant but it seemed to be causing quite a stir among every level of leadership she knew of. From her home to her school and then to her local church, it seemed to be the word on everyone’s lips. And it seemed to be synonymous with another word she could pronounce but slowly… Dag Heward-Mills.
If only she could be part of the many meetings and whisperings going on all around her, perhaps she would find out more as to what all the uproar was about.
Wednesday morning, and it’s time to march briskly for 5 kilometers to school. Amaya sat dazed through most of the lessons, while repeatedly writing in her note book…”crusade”.
She met up with her chattering friends after school for the journey home. They walked through the town center where she noticed several banners in bright colors floating in the dusty skies proclaiming, “Healing Jesus Campaign”.
As she gazed at the banners, she thought she could see a cloud of dust rising in the distance. A sand storm, a stampede, an invading army of… the police? She pointed towards the spectacle, as did many others by the roadside while chattering excitedly at this wonder. A police motorcade emerged from the cloud of dust, followed by a train of big cars, trucks, and buses, in what seemed like an endless convoy stretching for some 2 kilometers! It was a show-stopper! A vendor standing by her suddenly screamed with realization, “It’s the crusade! They are here! Ayayayayaaa!!!”
That was when Amaya noticed the writings on the trucks and buses, “Healing Jesus Crusade; Dag Heward-Mills; The Evangelist”
She could see by the dust on the vehicles as they passed by her, that they had been in journeyings often, and yet in pretty good shape. It felt like the victorious arrival home of hardened soldiers after many battles. Wow! No wonder! The atmosphere had suddenly changed! A crusade must be a type of celebration, she thought to herself. The excitement in the air said it all!
Amaya ran the rest of the distance home, hoping to be the first to tell her parents what she had witnessed, but it seemed news traveled faster than her skinny legs. Her mother was already busy narrating the jubilant entry of “The Evangelist” to all and sundry! Her father sat on his favorite chair and listened with a grin on his face. He was blind and relied heavily on her mother. This afternoon he seemed to almost be relieved that his wife was not whining but elated. Amaya listened to her mother’s version, and for the first time, she realized the pieces of the puzzle were now falling in place.
She was too excited to eat. The sun was almost setting and the whole town seemed to be moving in one direction: to the open field by the football grounds. She had seen bulldozers clearing it some days before and wondered why. But now she knew. She needed to finish her chores and get there as quickly as possible.
Amaya followed her mother who was pushing her father in his wheelchair through the throng heading to the park. Several groups of people were singing and dancing on the streets, it truly was a festival! She couldn’t help but join in praising the Lord. The buses she saw earlier on in the day appearing through the cloud of dust came slowly down the road laden with people also singing and dancing. It seemed there couldn’t be anyone left in town at this rate. Behind her the whole town lay in darkness as the government ran its everlasting load-shedding program. As darkness fell, lights rose on the park. And so everyone headed to the light. There was hardly enough space to enter through the narrow gate into the park!
She left her parents at the back and pressed through the crowds until she was close enough to the stage to catch all the action. And yes, there was lights, camera, action! Choristers in bright robes sang and danced! So vibrant was the music you could almost feel the vibration of voices and instruments in the air! The music was unfamiliar yet catchy and in her local language so she could sing along. “Jesus!!!” she sang, and danced waving her bum to the left and right and going down as low as she could, “Jesus!!!”. This would be a night to remember for the rest of her life.
As the dust from all the dancing settled, a lone voice rang out. She looked closely at the stage. There were several people seated on it to her right, some of whom she could recognize: local bishops, pastors and important people from town. This time though they all seemed very mellow as they gazed in shock and awe at the crowds gathered to meet the Evangelist.
Amaya’s gaze traveled along the well-lit stage to the left where the lone voice emanated. The lady sang softly but strongly “People need the Lord…”. The crowd listened in silence, then erupted in applause at the end, as if to say they agreed with her that they needed the Lord. She joined in the applause and watched as a gentlemen wearing a long purple robe took the stage and announced “…. let’s welcome Evangelist Dag Heward-Mills!…”
She stood up with the crowd, on her toes, peering to see who the Evangelist was. She had waited this long and couldn’t wait any longer. And there he was, tall, fair in complexion, robed like a king, waving his arms in the air as the crowd sang along with the choir, “I expect a miracle today!”. His was the pictures on the trucks she had seen earlier!
Then he spoke. His voice was clear and strong, and seemed to travel right across the darkness into town through those high-mounted speakers all around the park. “The Evangelist”, she said softly to herself, “He looks like Jesus!”.
She had to be sure. She pushed right up to the front and sat on the floor. She listened as he read from Luke 16, and told the story of Lazarus and The Rich Man. The wind grew chilly as his voice rang out, piercing through the crowd and entering right into her heart, sharper than a two-edged sword, dividing asunder her spirit and her soul. She felt almost alone on the park. Angels appeared on the stage, as did demons! One minute she was in heaven, feeling the very breath of Abraham on her cheeks, the next minute she was dying of thirst in hell! Water, precious water, just a drop please! Her eyes burned in agony as the story unfolded. She brushed the tears away, not wanting to miss a word from the Evangelist. Is he a preacher, a teacher, a prophet, a pastor or an evangelist, she wondered? “Never mind”, she thought, “and then what happened?”
The Evangelist read, “Luke 16:29. Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.”
“If you can see my hand stretched out to you today, and you can hear my voice, then Jesus is calling you. Come to Him today! He will save you! You don’t have to go to hell. You can also have eternal life in heaven.”
She was neither rich nor poor, but surely a sinner she was. She shot her hand up in the air, not caring what others thought. She had a sense of urgency, as if today was the only day available to her to make this decision. She needed to be saved, and this man who seemed like Jesus to her, was showing her the way. She stood up, and with tears streaming down her face, repeated the prayer after the Evangelist. “Lord Jesus, I come to you today, just as I am. Forgive me of all my sins. Wash me with your precious blood. Write my name in the book of life. From today, I belong to you. I will serve you. I will follow you. Satan, from today, it is over! I will no longer follow you! I belong to Jesus! I am born again!!!” She cried. She wasn’t sad, far from it. She was exhilarated! Liberated! Enamored! With Jesus! And with this man, the Evangelist, the only “Jesus” she had ever met! What a glorious day! She waved her hands in the air, just as she’d seen him do when he came on the stage.
Suddenly, someone thrust a book into her hand. She looked down and read “Dag Heward-Mills. How To Be Born Again And Avoid Hell”. She smiled excitedly and waved the book in the air. Then she looked around and saw thousands of others who had given their lives to Christ just like her also waving their books in the air! “I love you Jesus!” She screamed! “Oh yes, I do. I really do. I will truly serve you for the rest of my life.” And she meant it. The light breeze had given way to a soft drizzle of rain, but no one took notice of it.
Then the Evangelist began to pray for the sick. Suddenly she remembered her father! Is it possible that her father could be healed? He had been blind since she was big enough to know who he was. Apparently caused by an accident at his work place, he had lost everything since then. If he received his eyesight back, he would for the first time be able to see his daughter! Is it possible? She shut her eyes and prayed “Oh God, if you were able to save me from hell, then I know you can heal my father from blindness. Please he’s at the back of the crowd in a wheel chair. Find him and heal him please!”
Amaya prayed in earnestness until she heard the Evangelist say, “Olivia, what is happening?” To her amazement, there on the stage was her mother, running to and fro hysterically screaming “Jesus is Lord!!!” Then she saw her father with his arms in the air, crying and testifying “I am healed!” She gasped! Is it possible? Everyone around her was screaming and dancing! The Evangelist was dancing on the stage with her father! Amaya was so numb she didn’t even know what to say. “Oh my God, oh my God”, she kept repeating to herself. She could hear as if in the distance her father recounting how he became blind, and how he received his miracle of healing at the back of the crowd. How he felt a sensation of heat around his eyes and suddenly, he could see the lights on the stage!
Suddenly she heard her name, “Amaya, are you here? Come to the stage, quickly!” For a minute she stood, still in a daze, wondering if she had really heard the Evangelist call her name. Then someone in the crowd pushed her from behind, “Amaya! Go, quickly!!”. Immediately she sprinted round the front of the stage to the stairs leading to the stage and announced to the security, “I’m Amaya! He’s calling me!”
As she was helped on to the stage, she ran straight into her father’s arms. Her mother joined in as they wept for joy! All around her everyone was dancing and singing “Ehhhh, my God is good o!”. The Evangelist approached them, laid his hand on them and prayed for them. Amaya didn’t close her eyes. She gazed intently at the Evangelist, and instead of saying “Amen”, asked him quietly, “Sir, are you Jesus?” Suddenly there was a clap of thunder, and the rain poured in earnest. An usher quickly took her hand and led her off the stage. She looked back at the Evangelist just as she was descending, he was still praying for the sick and taking testimonies in the rain! She looked at the crowd to her right; they were not moved either. Several pulled out their umbrellas and danced to the jubilant choir in what seemed like a colorful sea of dancing umbrellas. “So this is a crusade”, Amaya thought to herself as she descended from the stage. “I pray it never ends”.
She didn’t need an umbrella, she was too happy to stand still! She danced to every song, screamed at every testimony, until eventually the Evangelist came off the stage and prayed for those who couldn’t make it onto the stage. And then he was gone, escorted into a waiting vehicle and off into the dark dusty streets of the town.
“He came all this way for me”, Amaya thought to herself. She had heard someone in the crowd report that the crusaders had crossed the borders of 3 countries and driven for thousands of kilometers just to reach her little town. “He came all this way for me!”. Her father has been healed, her family restored, but the greatest miracle of all, she was saved from going to hell!
She scrambled through the crowds and found her father relating the story again to all their relatives who had gathered around him. He was truly healed! As they walked home, she held on to her father’s hand, as her mother carried the now empty wheelchair folded on her head. He had come blind, now he can see! Praise the Lord!
She couldn’t sleep throughout the night. At dawn she was dressed and ready for school. But this time, she took another route: straight back to the park. She needed more information. Now that she was saved, what is she supposed to do? What is this warm sensation she feels in her heart compelling her to find out more about her savior? How can she realize her dream to serve God all her life? Who will show her the paths of righteousness now that she is born again? With all these questions running through her mind, she bounded on the dusty road leading to the park. She needed to get there, meet with the Evangelist, get her answers quickly and get back to school. Suddenly she stopped short in her tracks; the park was empty. She rubbed her eyes and looked again, nothing. Had she been dreaming? Was this not the site of her salvation and her father’s healing a few hours ago? Where was everyone? How can all the equipment: trucks, chairs, stage, speakers, buses, etc, vanish in a few hours?
She could feel her heart beating faster as tears welled up in her throat. “No, they can’t leave. No!” She cried. As she turned around she saw a big car with Healing Jesus Crusade written on the side slowly circling the park, as if doing a final inspection. She ran as quickly as she could to the car and waved at it to stop. A bald-headed gentleman in an orange Tshirt rolled down the window and asked her with a smile “Yes young lady, how can I help you?”. She was speechless for a moment. She had not had time to process everything and didn’t know how to start. So she said “I need to see the Evangelist.” The gentleman didn’t seem surprised at her request, but looked at her intently and asked, “Ok. Why?” She thought for a moment and then responded, “I want to be an Evangelist.” The gentleman smiled warmly at her response, came out of his car and took her hand. Then he prayed for her. He prayed that the will of God will be done in the life of this little girl, and that one day she would be like Jesus to someone else. “Amen”, she responded. “Now,” He said, “go back to school, and don’t forget to read your Bible and the book you received.” “Yes Sir”, she replied. She watched him drive off slowly, and then, made her way back to school, all the while wondering if she would ever hear the life-changing pure gospel of salvation through Jesus Christ as she had heard preached last night.
The conference which is not only meant for Africa also has pastors coming from as far as Ukraine, Australia, Hungary, Germany and India.
During the conference pastors are hosted for four days receiving Training morning, afternoon and evening. 
The Conference provides interpretation for different nationals including Russian, Spanish, Portuguese and French.
